Men's Golf Places Fifth for Second-Straight Tournament

AMARILLO, Texas — The St. Mary's University Men's Golf team jumped three spots on the final day of the Ryan Palmer Foundation Invite to finish in fifth place in the team's second tournament of the year.

The Rattlers finished the tournament one-under-par, shooting an 839 (287-271-281) over the three rounds. The total is the fifth-lowest 54-hole tournament in St. Mary's history, and the lowest since the 2018 team shot an 836 in the same tournament. 

No. 4 Oklahoma Christian won the team title with an 814 (273-266-275), while Colorado Mesa was second, host and #20 West Texas A&M placed third and #23 Midwestern State ended in fourth.

Cole Beyer, a senior from Colorado Mesa birdied five of his final six holes to snatch victory away from Rattlers' junior Kongpop Kaikaew (Rayong, Thailand). Kaikaew finished second, one stroke behind Beyer at -12 after firing a 198 (67-62-69) on the par-70 course. His 198 breaks the St. Mary's 54-hole tournament record of 199 by Emilio Gonzalez from the same tournament in 2018. His 62 in the second round on Monday also breaks the single-round record by two strokes. 

Kaikaew was second in the tournament in both par-3 and par-4 scoring, averaging 2.67 strokes on the par-3s and 3.81 on the par-4s. He also recorded 17 birdies in the 54-holes, second-best amongst the field.

The biggest mover of the day for the Rattlers was junior Baptiste Touchard (Saint-Agathon, France), who leaped 16 spots to tie for 24th place. Touchard shot a 68 in the final round after posting rounds of 73 and 69 on Monday to finish at 210 (E).

Freshman Elijah Galvan (Austin, Texas) moved up one place into a five-way tie for 39th with his three-round total of 214 (74-68-72). Sophomore Philip Hallström (Gävle, Sweden) was extremely consistent through his three rounds, carding a 73, followed by a pair of 72s to end in a five-way tie for 62nd place at 217. Hallström recorded 39 pars on the 54 holes, tied for the fourth-most in the field and only three off the lead of 42.

In his first collegiate tournament, freshman Zach Seader (Bulverde, Texas) saved his best round for last, turning in a 77 on Tuesday for a three-round total of 240 (80-83-77).

The Rattlers take a week off from competition, returning to the links on Oct. 21-22 at the annual Hrnciar Invitational, hosted by Cameron at the Territory Golf and Country Club in Lawton, Okla.
 

Ryan Palmer Foundation Invite

Amarillo CC - Amarillo - Texas - 
Hosted By: West Texas A&M
NCAA Division II (Men)
Oct 7 - Oct 8, 2024
 

5/17 (par 70) St. Mary's	287	271	281	839 (-1)
2. Kongpop Kaikaew (4)	67	62	69	198 (-12)
T24. Baptiste Touchard (2)	73	69	68	210 (E)
T39. Elijah Galvan (3)	74	68	72	214 (+4)
T62. Philip Hallström (1)	73	72	72	217 (+7)
89. Zach Seader (5)	80	83	77	240 (+30)